Photo by: Jacob Lips
Grand. Majestic. Imposing. Beautiful. Stunning. These are just some of the words that will describe Arizona’s Grand Canyon National Park, a 1,217,262-acre preserved landform. It is considered one of the Wonders of the World. It is one of the most visited national parks in the U.S., having welcomed some 6,380,495 people in 2018.
History
The park just celebrated its 100th anniversary this year, having been established on Feb. 26, 1919. Before it became a national park, the Grand Canyon was already a tourist attraction. President Theodore Roosevelt called its view “absolutely unparalleled” during his 1903 visit.
The canyons’ rocks date back to the Precambrian Era, which is between 500 million and 4.6 billion years ago. The canyons were created, as the Colorado River and its tributaries barged into the area when the Colorado Plateau was elevated.
In 1979, the park was also designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Photo by: Jacob Lips
Places to go
The park is divided into two sections: the South Rim, which is frequented by visitors, and the North Rim, which is sometimes closed because of its higher elevation, which means a possibly more dangerous terrain following an intense snowfall.
The South Rim
This part of the park is open the entire year. One of the first stops in the park is the Grand Canyon Village, where the visitor center is located as well as the parking point. It is also here that the visitors will have their first glimpse of this imposing landform. This village also contains the Historic District, which was the busy tourist part of the Grand Canyon over 120 years ago, before it became a national park. There is a tour on foot by the historic train depot. Among the old buildings located along the Historic District are the Lookout Studio, Hopi House and Verkamp’s Visitor Center.
Visitors may then take a scenic trip through the Hermit Road, via the Hermit Road Shuttle. The trip makes nine stops at viewpoints that provide wonderful views of the Grand Canyon.
Desert View is a spot near the eastern edge of the park. The Colorado River can be seen from here as it makes a turn north, while the Painted Desert shows off its beautiful colors. In this area, visitors will also find the Desert View Watchtower, which was built in 1932. Famous architect Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter designed the structure, which has been preserved as an ode to Colter for her commitment to cultural preservation. The Colorado River is visible from the Watchtower.
The North Rim
Only 10% of the visitors end up here, which is understandable as it is usually closed during winter months. This is also a more suitable tourist attraction among the more adventurous visitors. There are available lodgings in the area, while campers can bust out their tents at the North Rim Campground.
To get a great view of the Grand Canyon from this section of the park, one should walk to the paved trail of Bright Angel Point. For a moderate hike, there is the North Kaibab Trail, which is a perimeter hike of the North Rim.
The North Rim also has some exciting scenic drives like the Point Imperial and Cape Royal, which have several pullouts with the majestic view of the Grand Canyon. Point Imperial is the highest point in the North Rim and it provides a nice vista of Mt. Hayden, Painted Desert and the eastern part of Grand Canyon. Cape Royal, on the other hand, is a popular point to see the sunrise and sunset.
The North Rim is generally closed during the winter months but those with permits can backpack, snowshoe and ski at the area’s campground.
River trips
The Colorado River makes for some exciting adventure among thrill-seekers. There is a commercial river trip in the river for half a day, and there is non-commercial whitewater rafting that ranges from two to five days. Permits are needed, of course.
In the Diamond Creek, commercial river trips are range from three to 18 days, and raft trips range from 12 to 25 days.
Grand Canyon Skywalk
This is basically outside the park’s venue, but it was created to give visitors a place to marvel at the Grand Canyon from a completely different viewpoint. Many purists criticized it because it destroys that natural element that makes the Grand Canyon special. But it doesn’t matter because tourists love it. The Skywalk is a semi-circular bridge that is 70 feet off the canyon. The Skywalk is located on the Hualapai Indian Tribe grounds.
Photo by: Jacob Lips